one before unlucky

Thursday, April 21, 2005

For the first time yesterday, I paid for fuel with a $50 note & only received coin as change.

I have always had a note or two given back, so I'm pretty sure I gave the guy behind the counter a strange look before I worked out what was going on.

My first thought was that he was trying to short-change me, but I eventually realised that Petrol is getting damn expensive even with my car being small & unbelievably economical. I thankful for not owning something like a Land Rover!

I've heard a quote which sums it up nicely - "I own my car, but I'm paying off the Petrol!"

posted by elliott # 2:35 pm

Monday, April 18, 2005

I wasn't expecting to continue my post from last week regarding the email bandit, but here's what's going on.

I knew exactly what was going to happen on Friday afternoon regarding the matter, so this morning I decided to put my point across.

The Financial Controller, who is effectively my boss, has decided not to raise the issue with the employee involved, instead waiting until the Human Resources Manager can do it for her tomorrow. When I first found this out, my jaw hit the floor once again.

I walked in to her office, playing ignorant & asked the FC what was going to happen. She looked at me in shock & in the usual, "not my responsibility" pose, stated that it was a HR matter & would be dealt with tomorrow, which is the employees last day.

I ask - What is the fucking point?!?!?

Instead of actually saying that, I said "Don't you think that's a bit late & I would have thought it best to address it as soon as possible?" The response was the same - "HR matter." She started to say something else, but I walked out on her. Hopefully she cottoned on to how disgusted I am. Her door has been closed since, which leads me to think she ain't happy!

posted by elliott # 10:13 am

Friday, April 15, 2005

This morning there was a protester on a local intersection, with a flashing light & a sign reading - "Downer, you dickhead. Get Corby home!"

I thought this guy was crazy at first, but after the events of the last 24 hours, I understand why he feels so strongly.

Schapelle Corby is an Australian facing a possible death penalty for transporting over 4 kilos of marijuana into Indonesia. I've been mixed in my opinion of whether she may be or may not be guilty.

When the case first broke & from the way she was acting, I thought she may well have been busted for trafficking drugs, relying on her knowledge of traveling between the two countries to avoid detection. As time has gone on, I have come to think that her cool facade may just well have been pure shock & a lack of realisation for the consequences.

The issue which has slowly crept in is the non-existent Government support, & the scampering which has been done to avoid talking about the issue.

During an interview yesterday, Prime Minister John Howard, stated that he was unaware of all the facts of the case, could not comment & would let the Indonesian justice system take its course. How could the PM not be aware of the details, when more than one person has confirmed that massive quantities of drugs are being transported between states & the airport baggage handlers are directly involved in getting the drugs on planes?!? Further to this is a baggage handler getting caught last week removing & showing off items which had been removed from a passenger’s luggage.

If the Government really wanted to keep from interfering in another country's legal system, that's fine. However, ignoring the obvious potential for someone’s baggage to be tampered with, including for the purpose of smuggling drugs, then claiming they don't know & are not investigating the details is unforgivable & by late next week, we’ll find out if it costs a girl’s life.

posted by elliott # 5:29 pm

We found out yesterday, an employee who was sitting at the desk of someone else a few days ago, decided to reply to the personal emails which were being received.

They replied with personal information & quite a few spelling mistakes & then signed the email as being from the person it was intended for!

I sat with a fair bit of bewilderment for some time, trying to think how someone could justify such stupidity.

The idiot happens to be the person I took over from while they went on maternity leave. If she hadn't got knocked up again so quickly to be leaving next week, I think she would have been fired over this matter.

The first thing I did was filter through my "sent" items folder, to see if I too was a victim. Thankfully, not so! How blatently dense can someone be to think they have the right to go through someones personal stuff & then act as that person!

posted by elliott # 9:05 am

Thursday, April 14, 2005

I enjoy doing the odd online puzzle & here's one which comes from Japan. The Blue Chamber, from which you need to escape, is a single room which holds some clues to be deciphered. It's as frustrating as hell & was orignally designed as a mobile phone game. Gee, & we all thought mobiles were annoying enough!?!

FASCO-CS >BLUE CHAMBER

posted by elliott # 4:42 pm

Sunday, April 10, 2005

I have a bit of a problem when it comes to music. I have quite a number of CD’s which rarely get a listen to before they get a residency in a cabinet above my stereo. That’s because they turn out to be crap, with only one or two songs which get an honorable mention. Two which quickly come to mind are, “Boomslang” by Johnny Marr + The Healers & “Get Born” by Jet. I admit ownership to these albums simply because they were cheap. I expected sooo much more from these “artists”, but was horribly disappointed.

The other end of this scale is probably more disturbing. My favourite performers have released albums which come in more than one format, often with bonus material or live performances, which of course, need to be part of my collection. The issue is that I normally have one edition when another gets released. Here is a list of the albums I own in duplicate;

Neil Finn – “Try Whistling This” – The original & an edition which included all the studio recordings which never made the record.

Crowded House – “Recurring Dream” – The original & a limited edition of live recordings.

Mark Knopfler – “Sailing to Philadelphia” – Two copies of the same album, but one came with a separate bonus disc.

Mark Knopfler – “Shangri-La” – The original & a DVD edition containing an interview, videos & the album recorded in 5.1 surround sound.

It’s the last one the list which prompted this entry & I’m not distressed by the doubling up. When the album was released, Australia missed out on any of the limited editions which were issued throughout Europe. I went searching on EBay & through Amazon & didn’t have too much success, until…. I came across “Red Eye Records” in Sydney which just happened to have what I was looking for.

I don’t know how rare it is, being a digipack copy, but I’m thrilled to have it in my grasp. The irony is I actually had a scrounge through the store when I was in Sydney last year. They have some nice stock, including a copy of the very first CD single which was released – “Brothers in Arms” by Dire Straits. (Let’s just say it costs a small fortune!)

Speaking of which, “Brothers in Arms”, which is one of the biggest selling records of all time is nearly twenty years old! In light of this, a special version will be released to commemorate it, which I will most certainly have to own!

I think I either need to clean out all my duplicate & crap CD’s or seek treatment for my compulsive disorder!

posted by elliott # 9:18 pm

Well, here we go. The vote was made, the results accepted & the changes made.

In the end, it's all ended up very "urban" in style, but I don't mind it at all. The logo font grabbed my eye as I played around in Fireworks & breaks my Verdana passion that's been in place since the beginning. Along with the Fender medium pick as a spacer & a few other tweaks, the new design is in place.

Hope you like it! If not, leave the abuse in the comments!

posted by elliott # 3:06 pm

Sunday, April 03, 2005

I'm not sure how I ended up going to see the equestrian events in Hindley Street on Friday night, but I did. (for those in the know, you'll understand it has absolutely nothing to do with horses, so let's never mention it again!)

Anyway, before the above occurred, we said goodbye to yet another staff member who is going off to have a baby. We do it all again in two weeks time & this coming Friday, yet another person is leaving for Sydney to live. Three straight weeks with people going.... why won't anyone get me pregnant or offer me a job interstate?? (Okay, so the pregnancy thing might be a bit difficult...)

After the goodbyes, I went into one of the other function rooms to the re-launch of a business we use at the hotel. These computer tech guys who run a rapidly growing service have been great & it was good to meet some of their other clients. However, little did I know I would catch up with a couple of other Adelaide Bloggers in the process. I've met Goldie before at a meetup, but she's been offline for quite sometime as the DramaQueen website will show. She posts her thoughts elsewhere these days, without the hassle of trying to satisfy the masses. Also, a lesser prominent writer, who was only in action for a short time, was Stone Cold Sober. I've actually known him for six months or so without knowing it. Of course, he had no idea I was running this site either!!

It just proves how common blogging is & you just never know who you might be bumping into!

Today, the Pontiff finally took the journey, to see whether what he preached on earth for so many years, actually exists. Whilst I'm not religious, I hope he is rewarded on the other side. There aren't too many who have done as much good with humanitarian deeds & breaking down the barriers & really, there are even fewer who would have wanted to keep working until death is their retirement.

To those who voted in the first (& possibly last) Pazza's Poll, it's all going green soon. The stripe is in preparation & when I get an idea for a logo which works, the paint will be applied & then I'll rivet it into place!

posted by elliott # 9:27 pm

email

elliotte@senet.com.au

Thursday, April 21, 2005

Monday, April 18, 2005

Friday, April 15, 2005

Thursday, April 14, 2005

Sunday, April 10, 2005

Sunday, April 03, 2005

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